Chapter Seven
Even with her defenses up, Avery found Harrison entertaining, easy to talk to, both amusing and intelligent.
She liked that he didn’t seem to mind the wait, showing patience and a positive attitude.
Certainly, chatting with him helped the time pass.
Otherwise, Avery would have been bored and restless like many of her fellow passengers.
“I found the best way to get to know someone is to ask questions,” he said, holding the last of the popcorn in his hand.
“That works for me so long as it’s a two-way street.”
He gestured toward her. “Ask away. My life is an open book.”
She eyed him carefully. “Okay, tell me about your last serious relationship and why you split.”
He groaned. “Sorry, I’m not willing to walk through that minefield.”
Avery couldn’t help it, she laughed.
His brow creased with speculation. “You did that on purpose, didn’t you? What was that—some kind of test?”
“You passed,” she said, still having trouble holding back her amusement.
“I suppose you’re going to bring up religion next.”
“No, you’re off the hook.”
“Good. My turn.”
She nodded and signaled for him to continue. “Have at it.”
“All right,” he said, as if thinking hard. “Tell me your favorite childhood memory.”
She mulled over her answer. “That’s deep.
Let me think.” There’d been several that immediately came to mind.
One, however, stood out. “I was around eight or nine and wanted more than anything to visit Disneyland. As young as I was, I knew a trip that expensive was more than my grandparents could afford. Instead, we drove to South Dakota, where my great-grandparents once had a farm. We saw Mount Rushmore and met all kinds of relatives. One of my great-uncles still farmed wheat. I ate corn right off the cob and got to hold piglets and milk a cow. It was amazing.” Reliving those memories warmed her heart.
They continued with the questions, each taking a turn. Harrison was right, this was a good way to learn about each other and what was important.
Although they were involved in their discussion, Avery couldn’t help noticing that those milling around the area were growing increasingly impatient at the time it was taking to get the ferry up and running again.
Crew members came and went but offered little in the way of information.
Voices were getting louder as people grew more and more agitated.
“Hey, look.” The middle-aged man with the glasses who was part of the band sat in one of the booths. Excitedly, he pointed out the window. Several commuters raced to the side of the ferry. The musician stood, directing others to what he was staring at in the distance.
Harrison moved closer to the window to get a better view.
“What is it?” Avery asked, curious herself.
“It’s another ferry,” he told her, wearing a puzzled frown.
“It’s empty,” the band guy shouted, then added for emphasis, “The ferry is completely empty. No cars. No passengers. That ferry should be coming to rescue us. Instead, it’s sailing directly past us and heading to Seattle while we’re trapped here.”
“Empty?” Avery repeated, wondering what that might mean.
As if reading her mind, Harrison suggested, “I imagine the Department of Transportation is sending another ferry to Seattle to replace this one.”
“It certainly looks that way,” James agreed.
Avery had glanced his way every now and again.
The poor guy, who sat with his shoulders slumped forward, kept an anxious study of his phone, as if he expected it to ring at any moment.
He’d mentioned that a neighbor had come to sit with his wife and that helped relieve his mind somewhat.
It couldn’t be easy to see an empty ferry pass him by, though.
It made sense that the WSDOT would look for a way to solve the problem by recruiting another ferry. With the Yakima breaking down, the backlog of passengers and cars waiting must have crowded the already busy streets of Seattle. The terminal must be bursting with walk-on traffic.
It was crewman Earl Jones’s bad timing that he should walk through the passenger deck just as the other ferry sailed past.
“Hey,” the band leader shouted, waylaying Earl. “There’s an empty ferry out there.”
Earl paused mid-step and turned to face the angry crowd. “Yeah, I know. The backup in Seattle is closing down streets and . . .”
“Why are you not more concerned about us, instead of what’s happening in Seattle?” someone Avery couldn’t see shouted. Whoever it was did nothing to disguise his anger.
“We’ll be on our way soon enough,” Earl said, as if placating a child.
“How soon?” James demanded. He rose to his feet and raised his hand in the air to gather Earl’s attention. “I need to get to Seattle. I don’t have time to waste sitting around here twiddling my thumbs while—”
He was cut off by a volley of irritated voices.
“My band is stuck here, too, you know,” the guy by the window shouted. “We’re supposed to be playing for a wedding.”
“Hey, hey, people, settle down,” Earl cried, his voice loud enough to garner attention. “I get it. No one is happy with the situation. Complaining isn’t going to change anything. Just relax . . . The necessary part is sure to arrive anytime now.”
“Relax? You want us to relax?” someone else said with a loud, disbelieving groan. “Are you kidding me right now?”
“You mean to say the part hasn’t even arrived?”
A loud rumble of unhappy voices filled the area.
“We should sue the state.” The suggestion came in the form of a shout.
“Yeah. Anyone here an attorney?” another person asked.
A bevy of loud discontentment rolled through the deck like a tsunami after an earthquake.
“We’ve already been here well over an hour,” the grandmotherly woman with the tin box of cookies in her lap said. “How much longer is this going to take?”
Earl Jones held up his hands as if someone had pointed a gun at him. “Quiet down. Quiet down. You’re all talking at once. I can’t make sense out of anything you’re saying.”
His plea was ignored.
“You be quiet.”
“Yeah. You’re no help whatsoever.”
“You have to wonder what kind of people the state hires to operate these ferries.”
“Who is responsible for the maintenance of these ferries, anyway?”
“You’re right, we should sue.”
Looking completely exasperated, Earl demanded, “Sue us for what?”
“For emotional distress,” a woman shouted. “I’m missing my family’s celebration. It’s the first one in five years. My grandmother flew all the way from New Jersey to be with us.”
“I’m supposed to pick up my kids for Christmas,” a man shouted. “I have no way of letting my ex know why I’m late, since she’s blocked my number. She’ll probably take me to court to keep my children away from me after this.”
“I’m sorry, folks,” Earl said. “I know everyone has places to go and people to see. It’s an unfortunate set of circumstances.”
“You think this is unfortunate?” a man standing in the back said with a groan. “I’ll tell you what’s unfortunate. I have tickets to see The Nutcracker with my daughter. I paid a small fortune for those tickets.”
Another voice chimed in. “My boss said if I was late one more time, I should look for another job. I’m late because this ferry never seems to run on schedule. What’s with you people, anyway?”
Earl eased his way to the stairwell. “I’m sorry, folks, but I can’t tell you anything more. I’m just as eager to reach Seattle as you are.”
“Yeah, right.”
Having said his piece, Earl flew down the stairs as if escaping a burning building.
Avery didn’t blame him. The longer he remained on the passenger deck, the louder the chaos became. She understood everyone’s frustration. For her own part, it hadn’t been as frustrating as it was for the others. Her only concern was her brother.
She hated the thought of Reed waiting at the ferry terminal.
He’d texted earlier and assured her he was able to change their lunch reservation.
That time had long since passed. Avery hoped he had the good sense to head back to his condo and wait for news.
He lived within walking distance of the waterfront.
Considering the news that the repair part had yet to arrive, she needed to let him know this wait was going to be longer than anticipated.
Reaching for her phone, she started to text and then decided she’d rather talk to him personally.
He answered on the third ring, and she wondered if he hadn’t been able to hear the call for all the activity and noise in the terminal.
“Hey, there. Any news?” he asked.
From the sounds of cars honking and Christmas music playing in the background, he must have decided to head home.
“Reed, I’m sorry you had to cancel the reservation. I should have called earlier to let you know I wasn’t going to be able to make it.”
“No problem.” He didn’t need to sound so cheerful about it. She’d been looking forward to their lunch.
“What’s up?”
“Unfortunately, not much. It doesn’t look promising that I’ll arrive anytime soon.”
“That’s okay. Oh, and I kept the reservation.”
“You did?” On the one hand she was pleased, and on the other she was disappointed that she hadn’t been there to enjoy the seafood with him.
“Actually, the ferry breaking down worked out better than I could have expected.” Once more he sounded like he was ready to do a happy dance that she was being held as a virtual prisoner on the dark waters of Puget Sound.
“It worked to your advantage, did it?” She wasn’t sure how she felt about that.
“I ran into Kellie at the terminal,” he went on to explain. “I’d briefly met her once before; we both work for Microsoft.”
Ah, now she understood and was pleased for him.
“Seeing that you weren’t going to make it, Kellie agreed to join me for lunch. We’re just leaving Anthony’s now.”
Any lingering resentment she held immediately melted away. “That’s great.” It was nice to hear her brother sounding so relaxed and happy.